CHANGING SEASONS IN CALGARY???
Spring is a strange thing in this neck of the woods. One day its 20 degrees and sunny. The very next day can be blowing snow! Moving away from winter is often a 2 steps forward, 1 step backward dance. Calgary’s City council has been notoriously reluctant to move forward with change as well. That might shift soon.
Next week is going to be a spicy one in this city! But I should go back a few months to explain how we got here. Late on a Saturday night, September 16, 2023, Calgary City Council voted 12-3 in favour of new zoning bylaws. The discussion back then was about the housing crisis. 162 people spoke to a 3 day committee meeting. The decision was intended to improve affordability. It was all based on the 2023 Housing Needs Assessment Report, https://www.calgary.ca/communities/housing-in-calgary/housing-needs-assessment.html. There were good intentions behind the decision.
Calgary’s Housing Accelerator fund for $228 Million (from the Federal government) was supposed to be tied to the new zoning. However, according to announcements today (by Mayor Gondek), that is not true. (readers will need to google those news articles)
At issue is what is being called “blanket rezoning.” This would mean that any area of the city could see a duplex built, secondary suites, backyard suites, or row housing. There are more details, but essentially R-1, which is one house on one lot, would cease to exist.
Apparently exterminating the one-house-on-one-lot zoning has upset a lot of people, including the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB).
Which brings us to Monday morning, April 22, 0930. 675 people have already registered to speak in a marathon public engagement. So far, the endurance event is expected to last all week. The City of Calgary has never received this much interest/feedback on a single topic before now! Our usually passive Canadians have a lot to say about this issue!
Some of the conflict is about property values, shadows from larger buildings, and parking mayhem. Another side of the story is from tenants who desperately need better access to affordable housing options. But its not as simple as NIMBY versus tenant. And people are passionate!
This is a pivotal moment for City Council. Calgary has traditionally resisted densification. We have nothing comparable to Edmonton’s “skinnies” or their “15-minute city” vision or their parking rules. Not even close.
I’m very curious to see how City Council will deal with all this public engagement. What will the new zoning rules be? Where will they be modified or amended? How complex will development and building permits become?
Meanwhile, developers and builders are sitting on the sidelines a bit. No one wants to start a project, only to have the rules of engagement changed part way through the process. So that’s not helping the housing crisis.
Regardless of Calgary City Council’s decisions, the seasons are changing dramatically for real estate investors. Literally every level of government is involved in “the housing game” these days. Is it any wonder so many real estate investors are going south, and farther south, to invest in rental housing options? Sometimes it seems the path of least resistance is anywhere but Canada.
Ah, but we’re not giving up yet. Where others see chaos, we still see opportunity. We can learn the new building codes. We can adapt to the new tax rules just announced in this week’s federal budget. We can pivot to whatever the next zoning rules allow. That’s the beauty of being in business for over 15 years! We have knowledge, skills and experience to use and leverage with our partners. We’ve seen the highs, we’ve survived the lows, now it’s just time for a different season of change—and whatever pros and cons that brings.
